Huaxia Horse Racing and Owner Registration

Half an hour later, in the meeting room of Jianzhou Ranch.

"Are you sure it's Jianzhou Flying Shadow?"

Luo Fei looked at Zhang Jun, his expression serious.

"I'm sure, Uncle Luo." Zhang Jun nodded. "I believe in him."

"Good." Luo Fei smiled. "Then this horse is yours."

"Your father previously gave me a deposit. I'll only charge you the cost price for the horse. If there's anything left after deducting the cost, I'll use it for his future training and care. But you'll have to cover the subsequent trainer boarding fees and feeding costs yourself."

"I understand."

Zhang Jun replied.

Hearing that Zhang Jun had decided on Jianzhou Flying Shadow and understood the expenses to come, Luo Fei took a document from the drawer.

"Since you've decided to enter the horse racing industry, there are some things I need to tell you."

"In Huaxia, horse racing is a strictly regulated competitive sport. Any horse entering an official race must be registered. First, you need to register as an owner."

Zhang Jun accepted the document. The cover read, "Huaxia Horse Racing Association Owner Registration Guidelines."

"Our Huaxia racing system is divided into two levels: local racing and central racing." Luo Fei began to explain.

"Local racing is organized by local horse racing associations in each province and city. Basically, every prefecture-level city has a local racetrack. The races mainly include maiden races, Class A, B, and C races, local open races, graded stakes, and so on."

"Central racing, on the other hand, is organized uniformly by the Huaxia Horse Racing Association. Following international standards, it includes G1, G2, and G3 graded stakes, OP races, one-, two-, and three-win condition races, maiden races, winless races, as well as classic series such as the Triple Crown Classic and the Founding Celebration."

He pointed at the terms on the document. "Both central and local owner registration have corresponding requirements. New owners usually start with local racing, because central ownership has annual income and time requirements. You need to provide income statements for the past two years."

"You must first register with a local horse racing association in your province and obtain owner qualifications. Then, you need to register every horse under your name. Only after completing these procedures can a horse enter official races."

Zhang Jun read the document carefully.

Registering as an owner required proof of identity, a certificate of no criminal record, an explanation of the source of funds, and other materials, along with a registration fee.

Horse registration required pedigree certificates, health examination reports, proof of birth or purchase, and so on.

"Looks a little complicated," Zhang Jun said.

"It does require some paperwork, but don't worry." Luo Fei smiled.

"How about this? I'll have A-Yong take you to handle it. He happens to be going into Mindu City today, so he can take you to the horse racing association on the way."

As they spoke, a car horn sounded outside.

Luo Yong pushed open the door and walked in. "A-Jun, no time to waste. Shall we leave now?"

"The Jianzhou Horse Racing Association closes at four in the afternoon. If we go now, we can still make it."

Zhang Jun looked at Luo Fei. Luo Fei nodded. "Go on. Get the paperwork done early. We'll take good care of Jianzhou Flying Shadow here. Once you've registered as an owner, you can officially register him under your name."

"Thank you, Uncle Luo."

"We're family. No need for formalities." Luo Fei waved his hand. "Go on."

Zhang Jun followed Luo Yong into the car. The sedan drove out of the ranch gates and headed toward Jianzhou's urban district along the country road.

In the car, Luo Yong drove while introducing Zhang Jun to more details.

"Although Huaxia's horse racing system doesn't have as long a history as Europe, America, or Japan, it has developed very quickly and now has a complete industrial chain," Luo Yong said.

"There are more than thirty central racetracks nationwide, covering every province. As long as the economic situation isn't too poor, every prefecture-level city has a local racetrack. In economically weaker prefecture-level cities, several cities may jointly establish one.

"More than 470,000 races are held every year, and annual total betting turnover exceeds two trillion."

Zhang Jun was somewhat surprised. "That much?"

"That doesn't even include related industries derived from horse racing, such as breeding, feed, tack, and race broadcasting." Luo Yong smiled. "If those are included, the entire horse racing industry has an economic scale exceeding ten trillion."

He glanced at Zhang Jun. "Of course, the people at the top of this industry make a fortune, but small owners at the bottom might not even recover their costs. You need to be mentally prepared."

"I understand." Zhang Jun nodded. "I'll be careful."

"Also, owner registration and entering horses in races have certain requirements," Luo Yong continued.

"Depending on whether it's local or central racing, local owner registration requires proof of an annual income exceeding 300,000, while central ownership requires more than one million. At the same time, you need to meet the standard for two consecutive years and own assets worth more than 4.5 million yuan within Huaxia before applying in the third year."

"Of course, for you, it's really only a matter of time." Luo Heng glanced at Zhang Jun.

"And to enter a horse in a race, you need to find a trainer and jockey with trainer and jockey qualification certificates recognized by the local or central authorities. You must place your horse with a qualified trainer who has stables at the racetrack for training. The trainer registers the horse for races, and the jockey rides the horse in competition."

"If no trainer is willing to take your horse, and no jockey is willing to ride it in races, then it can only stay at the ranch as an ornament. Placing a horse with a trainer requires boarding fees, including training, feed, and stable costs. You also need to pay the jockey a riding fee for races."

"Both central and local racing have regulations for boarding and riding fees. Central boarding costs 30,000 yuan per month, while jockey riding fees are 2,000 yuan per race, including the jockey's insurance. Because of differences in training facilities, local boarding costs 24,000 yuan per month, while riding fees remain the same."

"In addition, to protect the interests of small and medium owners, Huaxia provides subsidies for horses entering races. Again, the amounts differ between central and local racing. Central races provide a 20,000-yuan entry subsidy for every competing horse, while horses that fail to place receive a fixed prize of 10,000 yuan."

"Local races provide a 9,000-yuan entry subsidy for competing horses and a fixed prize of 3,000 yuan for horses that fail to place. Basically, breaking even means one central race every month and a half, or two local races per month."

They talked as they traveled, and only after several hours did the car leave Jianzhou Ranch and enter Mindu City.

Luo Yong parked in front of a six-story gray building. Two signs hung at the entrance: "Mindu City Local Horse Racing Association, Min Province" and "Min Province Office of the Huaxia General Horse Racing Association."

"We're here," Luo Yong said.

The two entered the lobby. The interior was simply and practically decorated, with various horse racing photographs and trophy display cases on the walls. Several staff members were busy behind the counters.

Luo Yong was clearly familiar with the place. He walked straight to Window Three. "Miss Li, busy?"

Behind the window was a middle-aged woman in her forties. She looked up, saw Luo Yong, and smiled. "Oh, Young Master Luo, what brings you here today? Registering another horse?"

"Not for me today." Luo Yong stepped aside to reveal Zhang Jun. "I brought my younger brother to register as an owner."

Miss Li took out a stack of forms from beneath the counter. "First, fill out the 'Owner Registration Application Form.' You'll need a copy of your ID card and two recent one-inch photos. If you're a student, you'll also need a guardian's consent form..."

"He doesn't have a guardian," Luo Yong said calmly. "His father passed away last month. He independently inherited the estate."

Miss Li's expression immediately turned sympathetic. "I'm sorry, I didn't know..."

"It's all right," Zhang Jun said softly.

"In that case..." Miss Li searched through the documents.

"You'll need to provide relevant proof of inheritance, such as a notarized will or a court judgment."

"I brought them." Zhang Jun took out the document folder Liu Yong had prepared for him from his backpack.

Miss Li accepted the documents and examined them carefully. She nodded. "Everything is complete. Mr. Zhang, fill out the form first. I'll make copies of these documents for you."

Zhang Jun took the application form and began filling it out under Luo Yong's guidance. There was quite a lot to it, including basic personal information, contact information, explanation of the source of funds, whether he would use a racing prefix, silks design, and more.

Zhang Jun did not choose a racing prefix. In his mind, he hoped that all the racehorses under his name could leave descendants, and that those descendants could chase after their fathers' and mothers' shadows to achieve even better results.

Therefore, he decided that the first generation of his horses would be given pleasant names. Their descendants would be called Chase, followed by an association with the parents' names, or Chase or Pursue plus one character from either parent's name, then an animal, plant, or something else, like Jianzhou Ranch did.

As for the silks, Zhang Jun thought of his father.

His father liked blue. He said it was the color of the sky and the sea, capable of embracing everything.

Along with Zhang Jun's own favorite colors of black, white, and gold.

He designed silks with a blue body, a white galloping horse in the middle, and thin gold stripes around the collar and hem. The sleeves had a black base with two yellow wavy stripes, while thin gold stripes were added where the cuffs joined the garment.

After filling out all the forms, Zhang Jun handed them, along with copies of his documents, to Miss Li. After carefully checking them, she began entering the information into the computer.

"The registration fee is 1,200 yuan, and the owner qualification certificate production fee is 300 yuan," Miss Li said.

"Also, if you want to register a horse at the same time, there's a horse registration fee of 800 yuan per horse."

"I have one horse to register."

Zhang Jun took out the bank card Liu Yong had helped him obtain and paid.

"The procedures are complete." Miss Li handed Zhang Jun the receipt and a temporary certificate, then took out a "Horse Registration Application Form." "The official owner qualification certificate takes one week to produce. This is a temporary certificate with the same validity."

The "Horse Registration Application Form" required even more information: horse name, sex, age, coat color, pedigree, birthplace, current place of care, and so on.

With Luo Yong's help, Zhang Jun completed the form. He changed Jianzhou Flying Shadow's name to Shadow Hunter, hoping Shadow Hunter could help him hunt down the shadows in his heart.

"The horse name needs to be reviewed. It can't duplicate an already registered horse name, contain inappropriate wording, or duplicate the name of a Hall of Fame horse registered at Huaxia's graded level. Shadow Hunter... I'll check."

She searched on the computer for a moment. "There's no duplicate. It can be approved. Are you sure you want to use this name? Once it's registered, it can't be changed."

"I'm sure."

"Okay." Miss Li continued entering the information.

"Once the horse registration is complete, this horse will officially belong to you and can enter races organized by the local horse racing association."

She tapped on the keyboard, and the printer began working. A few minutes later, a temporary horse registration certificate was passed out through the window.

"The official certificate will also take a week. During that period, you can use the temporary certificate to arrange the horse's training and enter him in races." Miss Li smiled. "Congratulations, Mr. Zhang. You're now a true horse owner."

Zhang Jun accepted the certificate. Looking at the name "Shadow Hunter" and his proof of ownership, an indescribable emotion surged in his heart.